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(11/18/2010) - COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Nov. 18, 2010) - Nine U.S. Figure Skating athletes will compete Nov. 19-21 at the Rostelecom Cup, the fifth event in the 2010 International Skating Union (ISU) Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series. The event, held at the Ice Palace Megasport, begins Friday with the ladies, men's and pairs short programs, and the short dance. Official practice takes place Thursday.

Icenetwork.com will provide live and on-demand coverage of the Rostelecom Cup for Season Pass subscribers within the contiguous United States. Check out the live streaming schedule here.

The Grand Prix Series, now in its 16th season, consists of six international events in a cumulative point-scoring format. Approximately 300 athletes from 30 countries are expected to participate in the series. Each athlete is eligible to score points in two of the six scheduled events. The top six point-earners in each discipline qualify for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in Beijing, Dec. 9-12. Athletes will compete for a total of more than $1.35 million in prize money throughout the series.

LADIES
Leading the ladies contingent in Moscow is 2010 U.S. bronze medalist Ashley Wagner. The 19-year-old makes her second appearance of the season on the Grand Prix circuit after finishing fifth at the NHK Trophy. Her 2009-10 season featured medal-winning performances at this event (silver) and the NHK Trophy (bronze) before placing fourth at the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. Agnes Zawadzki, the 2010 World Junior silver medalist, made her Grand Prix Series debut at Skate Canada over Halloween weekend and skated to a sixth-place finish.

MEN'S
Reigning two-time U.S. champion and 2010 Olympian Jeremy Abbott is the lone men's representative for the United States in Moscow. He earned the silver medal at the season-opening NHK Trophy. A year ago, Abbott finished fifth at the NHK Trophy and, combined with his gold medal at 2009 Skate Canada, qualified for the 2009 Grand Prix Final, where he finished fourth. In 2008, Abbott became the first American man to win the Grand Prix Final.

PAIRS
2010 Olympians Amanda Evora and Mark Ladwig compete for the first time at the Rostelecom Cup. The duo opened their season with a fifth-place finish at the Cup of China. A year ago, Evora and Ladwig followed their silver at the 2010 AT&T U.S. Figure Skating Championships with a 10th-place finish at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games and a ninth-place finish at the 2010 ISU World Figure Skating Championships in Torino, Italy. Britney Simpson and Nathan Miller, the 2010 U.S. junior silver medalists, compete in their second Grand Prix event of the season. They placed sixth at Skate Canada in their Grand Prix debut. The pair qualified for the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final last December after third- and fourth-place finishes at JGP Germany and JGP United States, respectively.

ICE DANCINGMadison Hubbell and Keiffer Hubbell, the 2008 U.S. junior champions, continue their second season on the Grand Prix circuit. They look to improve on a sixth-place finish at their season opener at the Cup of China. The Hubbells finished eighth last season at Trophée Eric Bompard and sixth at Skate Canada.